Baby bottle refrigerating unit



E. H. LUTZ BABY BOTTLE REFRIGERATING UNIT Juy 24, 1953 v Filed Jan. 2e, 1948 FIG. 1-

s. XV

Inventor: Edmund H. Lu z Patented July 24, 1951 l .g-

.- l This invention .relates .to baby-bottle ice boxes and has for its principaly object 'theprovision of a 'receptacle 4[which-:will keep 1a ftwo dayLsupplv-.of a

babys formula at a proper refrigerating EAtemper- K ature especially lwhen travelling.

A further object of the invention is to provide .a bottle cooling cabinet Yof minimum .size and ""weght and 'inwhich' the ice container'locksthe bottlesand their supportingtrays'in placein'the ,cooler. Inthe drawings:

'g'ure lis a side elevation 'with one'si'd'e/ijevm'oved" Y.

Figure 2 is a side elevation with one end removed; and u Figure 3 is a fragmentary detail illustrating the method of supporting the bottle trays and illustrating a modified form of shelf for container.

As far as I know all devices for keeping a set of babys bottles are large and bulky and a bit too heavy to lend to convenient travelling. By making use of all of the space and -providing for the locking of the various elements by other of the elements I have produced an exceptionally compact and light carrying case sumcient to hold ten bottles of the usual size which is sufficient for two days feeding.

The form in which the device is illustrated in Figure 2 is that which up to the present'has proven the most suitable for manufacture on a somewhat limited scale but I have shown in Figure 3 a receptacle of metal having a fiber glass insulation as I would probably prefer this form in case the device is made in sufficiently large numbers as to warrant the initial outlay. The outside is generally a box ora cabinet of elongated form and in the present preferred type it consist of a shell which I make of plywood. The shell has a bottom I0, ends Il and I2, and a cover I3, preferably with an appreciable down turned margin I4. T his box or shell is lined with Masonite sheets I6 for the bottom, I'I forA the top, I8 for the sides and I9 for the ends. As will be noted, the Masonite press wood linings I8 and I Sextend upwardly beyond the ends II and I2 and approach very closely the lining material I'I of the cover I3. The adjoining edges of these perpendicular lining pieces are preferably sealed with a weather strip cement to make it thoroughly leakproof thereby insuring better insulation. The cover is secured to the lower portion of the receptacle as by a hinge 20 and I preferably add a sponge linsulation 2I completely around the joint between the lower portion of the receptacle and its cover, preferably by secur- OFFICE. f

:i'n'gthe spongefrubber l2 I `tothe `entire upperedge of xthe bottom section. -A'han'dle 23 forms a convenient carrying means land fthe' cover may -be secured lby lone for imore suit-'case type fasteners AAt each end of the receptacle I secure a pair fof L-shaped `vangle irons2`6 jand 221, the shorter 'Webs'-28'and2`9lof'wliioh'fareiparallel and spaced Vapart a distance to snugly receive 'a ftray 530 'hav- `r'abottle 'such as 432 fairly near the neck thereof.

'-I fnd 'it "quite unnecessary to `4add any other means for locating the bottles and therefore prefer to omit any lower tray although I have shown such a tray at 33 and the same may be used if desired. The tray 33 need not be secured in place and can simply rest on the bottom I6. As illustrated there are two of the trays 30 and each in turn may freely be slid to the center of the receptacle when that space is vacant. In normal use the trays are held in position by an ice bucket 36 having a cover 31 and a pair of bails 38, the latter having inturned ends 39 just below the bottom edge of the -cover 31 and having its transverse central portion 40 resting very close to the end of the bucket 36. The pivot portions 4I, formed by the inturned ends 39, are located quite close together as best seen in Figure 1. This with the elongated side arms 42 of the bails 38 makes it very convenient to lift out the bucket with one hand.

While the ice bucket 36 might rest on the floor of the container, the device is more efficient when I provide an end support 45 at each end ofv the receptacle. In its preferred form this support is a right-angular piece of wood having a thin sheet metal side 46. The two end supports position the ice bucket so as to leave a space all around thus providing for free circulation of air and thus better cooling the bottles 32. Figure 3 shows the method of arranging the angle supports 26 and 21 and also illustrates a modied form of receptacle consisting in this case of metal sheets 50 and 5I having between them fiber glass insulation 52. In this modification it might be more convenient to spot-weld the two angle pieces or rails to the sheet 5I as at 54 rather than use screws as illustrated at 53 in the preferred form.

What I claim is:

1. In a device of the character described, an elongated insulating receptacle, a cover, side and end walls, a horizontal, channel-shaped support positioned on the inner surfaces of the end walls, at each of the four corners of the receptacle, leaving a space between the two supports at each end at least as great as the length of either support, two perforated trays sliding horizontal- 1y in the supports from the proximate side toward the center, said trays being of less width than the Space between the supports to provide easy removal of the trays, and an ice-bucket removably positioned between the trays whereby to lock both trays in place on their supports when the icebucket is in position. l ,L 3

2. The device of claim 1 in which the four supports each consist of a pair of L-shaped angle strips with their shorter webs parallel and spaced apart to receive between them the trays.

3. The device of claim 1 with supporting means for positioning the ice-bucket so as to'leave a space completely around the bucketand to hold the bucket in place; in which the ice-bucket substantially ts the space between the two trays,y f

has a pair of balls each pivoted nearer the center than the end, a cover for theiceeloucket,` each of the bails having its handle portion short of and proximate one end of the ice-bucket cover, whereby to prevent either bail frompassing over either end of the ice-bucket when the cover is in place. i' v v 4. A light, portable baby bottle refrigerating unit comprising an elongated .rectangular plywood shell having a waterproofed presswood interliner covering the-,entire inner surface of the shell, a plurality of horizontally spaced; bottle tray supports securedtdeachv end f of .the shell,

4 trays having perforations therein to receive baby bottles and sliding freely on the supports toward the center of the receptacle in a horizontal direction, an ice-bucket extending substantially the full length of the receptacle and leaving space at top, bottom, and the four sides, end supports in the shell for the bucket to hold it spaced from the floor of the receptacle, a cover for the icebucket, a pair of bails pivoted to the bucket below the lowest margin of the cover each with a central handle portion, said ice-bucket extending REFERENCES CITED lThe following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 565,508 Rothenbach Aug. 11, 1896 598,801 Minter Feb. 8, 1898 1,113,523 Weeks Oct. 13,1914 1,383,453 Dougan July 5, 1921 1,796,343

Pierson Mar. 17, 1931 

